In the wake of the Donnie Walsh disaster, word has been reported that Mike D’Antoni will finally hire a defensive assistant as has been suggested by the Knicks front office. This is significant because D’Antoni had a falling out in Phoenix when he dismissed GM Steve Kerr’s request that he hire current Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau. Widely criticized by the media and Knick fans for the lack of defensive prowess in his coaching style, D’Antoni is trying to prove to Knicks hierarchy (Dolan and his secret lover) that he’s the right man for this job. I applaud D’Antoni’s ability to adjust his coaching style to fit the players that he has. Last season after trading for Carmelo Anthony, the “seven seconds or less” offense was all but scratched as most possessions down the court became half court sets that usually resulted in isolation basketball. This move shows D’Antoni’s intelligence. He realizes that this is going to be the best chance he’ll get to win championships and he needs to put his ego aside and admit he needs help coaching defense. Also it shows that he’s potentially panicked about his job security and is more likely to listen to the front office in hopes of securing his job moving forward. The only name I’ve heard so far is Lawrence Frank, who spent time around the team in the offseason, but he may be hired as the head coach in Toronto. I’ll keep posting as names come out but I believe it’s a very positive sign that D’Antoni is looking to hire an assistant.
[twitter-follow screen_name='tarmosino' show_screen_name='no']